YANMDfilter - what follows a finding of high CRP?
March 27, 2019 5:39 AM Subscribe
I am under medical care. I'm just a little perplexed.
My symptoms are mainly alternating diarrhea and constipation. The lab work came back with high CRP (21) and a borderline-high sedimentation rate (20, the max of the "normal" range). However, negative results on fecal calprotectin, nor elevated white blood cells, and everything else normal. I have low IgA, so I understand that my "normal" celiac result is somewhat questionable for false negative. I'm scheduled to see a GI doc in a few weeks. I feel crummy, but no fever or chills, have not been sick at all recently. I am generally healthy and fit.
My primary care MD said that the CRP is quite concerning, but has not indicated what comes next (like .... how concerning?). Google is, as usual, unhelpful on this specific question.
My question is, for those who might have been in a similar situation but again YANMD: what should I be expecting next? Is this a wait and see and retest, or should I expect some further investigation (MRI?) into why the CRP is so high, if it's a concern?
I'd like to feel better sooner than later, of course. I'd also like to know if something's wrong sooner than later.
My symptoms are mainly alternating diarrhea and constipation. The lab work came back with high CRP (21) and a borderline-high sedimentation rate (20, the max of the "normal" range). However, negative results on fecal calprotectin, nor elevated white blood cells, and everything else normal. I have low IgA, so I understand that my "normal" celiac result is somewhat questionable for false negative. I'm scheduled to see a GI doc in a few weeks. I feel crummy, but no fever or chills, have not been sick at all recently. I am generally healthy and fit.
My primary care MD said that the CRP is quite concerning, but has not indicated what comes next (like .... how concerning?). Google is, as usual, unhelpful on this specific question.
My question is, for those who might have been in a similar situation but again YANMD: what should I be expecting next? Is this a wait and see and retest, or should I expect some further investigation (MRI?) into why the CRP is so high, if it's a concern?
I'd like to feel better sooner than later, of course. I'd also like to know if something's wrong sooner than later.
21 is not high. 350 is high, 21 is borderline elevated. As missmagenta says, any kind of infection or inflammation can elevate it, so it isn’t something I’d worry about in isolation. I would continue to push for a diagnosis for the diarrhoea though (and I would say that even if the CRP was <5).
posted by tinkletown at 10:18 AM on March 27, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by tinkletown at 10:18 AM on March 27, 2019 [1 favorite]
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So many things can cause inflammation: illness, injury, gum disease, exercise, being overweight, I wouldn't worry about it specifically. Its very possible that whatever is causing the high CRP is also causing your symptoms but the test itself doesn't give any clues as to what that is.
I would worry more about getting tests done specific to your symptoms and then after they are resolved, get checked again. If its still high, obviously there's something else going on.
posted by missmagenta at 6:23 AM on March 27, 2019 [1 favorite]